KLM ’ s most obvious fleet replacement option was the Boeing 737-9 MAX , which had been flying for a few years with improved noise and emissions . However , it provided less capacity than the A321neo . Meantime , progress for the Boeing 737-10 MAX — the largest 737 variant — was lagging , which may have discouraged the group from continuing its partnership with Boeing . |
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KLM placed its order with Airbus just after the COVID-19 pandemic , a time of great uncertainty for the aviation industry . Importantly , it was just a few months after the end of the Boeing 737 MAX grounding . Boeing ’ s reputation was bearing scars .
At the time , Pieter Elbers was CEO of the Dutch flag carrier ( he now heads IndiGo , India ’ s largest airline ). “ The coronavirus pandemic has forced us to focus on survival for the past 18 months ,” he said then . “ Now that we are on
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the road to recovery , we can look to the future once more . With this order , which is an important component of our restructuring plan , we will further prepare our company as well as our customer experience for the future .”
By the beginning of this year , the fleet renewal process was in full swing , and all the airlines in the group had received their first A320neo aircraft , a delivery
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process that had started with Transavia Netherlands .
TRANSAVIA A321NEO
NETHERLANDS
On December 19 , 2023 , when Transavia Netherlands took delivery of the first A321neo , it was raining in Amsterdam . Hosted by the airline , I had the pleasure of attending my firstever aircraft inauguration .
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3 Inside the cockpit of PH-AXA , where the Boeing yoke is replaced by Airbus ’ sidestick
4 The brand-new safety card can be found in the seat ’ s pocket . The seat is equipped with a personal device holder and a USB-C charger .
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